The present disclosure relates to a heater. More specifically, the present disclosure is concerned with a collapsible portable heater for warming a preselected area.
Radiant heaters are well known and used to provide heat to selected areas of a given space. These heaters may be used to heat spaces such as workshops, patios, terraces and the like. One type of radiant heaters, LP/propane or natural gas fueled heaters are available in both free-standing and built-in configurations, and are primarily sold for commercial applications. For example, patio heaters have become especially popular in recent years in areas where no smoking laws are being applied to taverns and bars forcing patrons outdoors to smoke which can be especially inconvenient during cold nights. Patio heaters can be utilized to provide warmth in preselected outdoor areas making it much more comfortable for smokers, and for those who like to be outdoors.
Free-standing patio heaters that can be readily moved from location to location to heat preselected areas typically have a base that is sized to contain a fuel tank therein and an elongate hollow support projecting upward therefrom to a burner assembly housing in which air is heated by combustion of the fuel gases from the tank in the base. The burner assembly housing generally has a cylindrical wall provided with apertures to provide for the escape of the hot products of combustion in the housing. The flow of hot gases through the wall apertures heats the wall so that the wall emits radiant infra-red heat. A relatively large dome-shaped reflector is attached on top of the housing and opens downwardly for reflecting heat emanating from the housing generally downwardly about the support of the patio heater.
In the built-in configuration, which typically will not be moved after the unit is installed, the heater is connected to a source of gas such as provided by a gas utility company. This eliminates the need for the base so that the support extends all the way from the ground up to the burner assembly housing. In each of the free-standing and built-in configurations, the burner assembly housing and reflector dome have substantially the same construction. Other heaters may be mounted to the ceiling, still others may be fixedly mounted to a wall surface.
A drawback of the prior art heaters is that they often direct heat to a limited area. Another drawback is that the prior art heaters are oftentimes cumbersome to move and difficult to store when not in use. Accordingly, the present disclosure provides a new and improved portable, collapsible radiant heater which overcomes certain difficulties with the prior art designs.